Travel Tips & Advice on “walking”

Past more farms, little villages, shrines, magnificent camellias and cherry blossoms everywhere we looked, and one last forest, the 10-mile trail ended at Ohmiwa Jinja shrine a little after 4:00p. Ohmiwa Jinja is the oldest shrine in Japan, where Ohmononushi-no-ohkami is worshipped; this deity’s soul inhabits Mount Miwa, the sacred mountain. (By the way, the trail continued […]

The Yamanobe-no-michi Trail once connected the ancient capital of Heijo-kyo with Miwa and Kanaya and is thought to be the oldest road in Japan. It is lined with beautiful temples, shrines and old tombs, and many places are named in ancient Japanese chronicles and poetry. This trail began at Isonokami Shrine and extended for 10 […]

ex-Marine (husband, Steve) and I last visited Japan in 1987. That was a predominantly hiking trip into Japan’s Kita Alps with stays in basic ryokans, spas, two whirlwind days in Tokyo, that ended in fabulous Kyoto, every traveler’s favorite place. We loved this total immersion into Japanese culture and never returned for one reason; the exorbitant […]

We were both very glad to pack up and walk over to the beach for breakfast. This particular breakfast turned out to be the skimpiest of the entire South and North Albania trip. Some sort of fried dough, honey to dip it into and feta cheese to stick inside these cruller looking things. Coffee was […]

Growing up in a Chicago apartment, trekking and/or sleeping in a tent was the furthest thing from my mind. All I knew, came from watching Smoky The Bear and Bullwinkle The Moose. A vacation meant sitting on a Chicago beach or by a pool, sun-tanning and taking an occasional dip to cool off. However, I […]

The week’s hiking portion from France into Spain was over. Six hikers staying at Hotel S/aguarda in Cadaques (Helen and Kevin, two French ladies and us) were going to be transferred back to Colliioure by van. A 1-1/2 hour stop was scheduled in Figueres first for those who wanted to visit the famous Teatre-Museu Dali […]

Hotel S’aguarda also serves a huge breakfast buffet with ham, cheese, yogurt, etc. A sign over the tables asks “Please do not take food away” which we’ve seen people do all over Europe ( I had no intention of doing that). Another sunny and warm day, perfect for the walk to Casa Dali in Port […]

Cadaques has an old quarter with plentiful galleries, art and craft shops, along with clothes. Most shops only open on weekends in the winter, but Cadaques jumps from Easter on. The climate is mild doesn’t get too hot in summer. Information Office told us that the Tramontana can result in very “uncomfortable” weather during the […]

Both of us nearly fainted when we walked into the Hotel Porto Christo dining room for breakfast. A gigantic buffet of eggs, bacon, juice, yogurt, breads, sweet rolls, juices, cold cuts…View image…everything. The biggest breakfast we’d seen during the trip and you should have seen us eat. Still trying to make a decision, do we […]

Today’s route called for steep climb from sea level to the Monastery of Saint Pere de Rodes near the summit of San Salvador peak. This monastery is considered the most important building from the Roman era in Catalonia and can be reached by car (if you are driving) along with footpaths from Llanca or halfway […]